Being that it’s November, my thoughts turned to Thanksgiving. Visions of past family gatherings flit through my mind when each of us in turn said what we were thankful for.

Expressing gratitude, such a lovely tradition. Then I think, “Why wait for Thanksgiving when I can express gratitude anytime?”

I immediately pulled up a recent memory of a woman doing just that.

The second week in October, when it was still sunny, 70 degrees with a cool teasing breeze, I left an exercise class at St. Anne’s in the Inner Sunset and decided to walk up a few blocks to catch the N Judah home.

As I walked onto the one-step platform, I said “Hi” to a sister senior. She answered, “Isn’t it the most glorious day to be alive? I’m so grateful!” I responded enthusiastically in the affirmative, and our energy rays bounced off one another trading bursts of joyful happiness.

Hey, I thought this is good stuff. What’s been holding me back from being a grateful mensch?  Perhaps it was a rough ride with my Reformed Jewish religion.

In an opinion piece in “The Washington Post,” August 21, 2015, Christopher Kaczor, professor of Philosophy at Loyola Marymount University, said, “All the seemingly random good things in life can be seen as gifts from a loving God, for which thankfulness is appropriate.”

So, analyzing myself, I guess when I ditched religion, I somehow unconsciously threw out the baby with the bathwater, and left gratitude behind.

But as a student of psychology, I’m grabbing gratitude back from my internal dustbin. According to Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s blog by pediatric experts on May 3, 2020, “The Mental Health Benefits of Gratitude can:”

• Lift your mood, leading to lower rates of stress and depression.

• Make you more optimistic.

• Bolster social bonds. People report feeling more loved and more connected to others in their lives.

• Boost your physical health. Studies show that people who actively express gratitude take better care of their physical health, like eating well and exercising.

So, whether you write your gratitude, share it with others, say it out loud, or to yourself , your higher power, or the beautiful plant in front of you, try doing it on a regular basis. Especially when you feel frustrated by someone or something, it just may make you feel better!

I’m grateful for being able to share my thoughts with you! Happy Thanksgiving! What are you grateful for?